Water Purification : Research on the Energy Supply of Air Gap Membrane Distillation for Access to Clean Water

Abstract: Water stress is an ongoing problem in many places in the world, while the demand for clean and safe freshwater is growing due to the increasing population. In many developing countries, water supplies often are contaminated with arsenic, fluoride, etc. Therefore, it is important to realize that water scarcity and contamination issues concern only one sector but many. HVR Water Purification AB is developing a water purification prototype – ELIXIR 500 - using the air gap membrane technology and is implemented in Odisha, India, aiming to supply with 200 litre water daily. This thesis aims to estimate future energy sources to supply this prototype and explore the possibilities of using only renewable energy resources from technical, economic, and environmental perspectives. These are achieved by firstly identifying the energy possibilities in Odisha, India, and then calculating the feasibility of each solution chosen and finally analyzing the results. Among the energy sources, which are power grid, wind and solar power, diesel generator and solar-diesel hybrid system. It is found that the energy source to the prototype supplied by the power grid is 0.057 USD per litre water, which is the cheapest option. However, it is not feasible due to the lack of electrification from the local network. Meanwhile, the solar-diesel hybridized energy system is the most economical option if renewable energy sources are integrated with 0.11 USD per litre water.